NEPA Clean Energy Analysis: Deliverable 1
Clean Energy Project Landscape
Executive Summary
This report characterizes the clean energy project landscape by technology, lead agency, and geographic location.
Analysis covers 26,000+ clean energy projects extracted from the NEPA database, classified using energy technology tags (solar, wind, transmission, storage, geothermal, hydropower, nuclear, hydrogen, and efficiency/conservation).
Technology Distribution
How are clean energy projects distributed across technology types?
Transmission and solar dominate the clean energy NEPA landscape. Transmission projects comprise the largest share, reflecting the infrastructure buildout required to connect renewable generation to load centers. Solar’s prominence aligns with its rapid deployment growth over the analysis period.
Lead Agency Analysis
Which federal agencies are leading clean energy NEPA reviews?
| Department | Categorical Exclusion | Environmental Assessment | Environmental Impact Statement | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Energy | 20,819 | 476 | 344 | 21,639 |
| Department of the Interior | 4,136 | 233 | 245 | 4,614 |
| Department of Agriculture | 47 | 11 | 41 | 99 |
| Other Independent Agencies | 0 | 1 | 94 | 95 |
| Department of Defense | 7 | 2 | 29 | 38 |
| Major Independent Agencies | 0 | 3 | 30 | 33 |
| General Services Administration | 5 | 0 | 7 | 12 |
| Department of Homeland Security | 5 | 1 | 4 | 10 |
| Department of Transportation | 2 | 1 | 7 | 10 |
| Department of Commerce | 4 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| Department of Health and Human Services | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Department of Housing and Urban Development | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Department of State | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Department of Justice | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Department of the Treasury | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| International Assistance Programs | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Legislative Branch | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 25,029 | 730 | 812 | 26,571 |
DOE dominates clean energy NEPA reviews (81% of projects), followed by Interior (17%). Notably, DOE processes the vast majority through Categorical Exclusions (96%), while Interior shows more variation across process types. This concentration suggests DOE’s loan programs and grid modernization initiatives drive most federal clean energy review activity.
Geographic Distribution
Where are clean energy projects located?
State-Level Distribution
| State | Categorical Exclusion | Environmental Impact Statement | Environmental Assessment | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Carolina | 4,143 | 48 | 23 | 4,214 |
| Washington | 2,165 | 96 | 62 | 2,323 |
| California | 1,616 | 186 | 95 | 1,897 |
| Idaho | 1,666 | 92 | 59 | 1,817 |
| Oregon | 1,320 | 69 | 31 | 1,420 |
| Colorado | 1,295 | 44 | 46 | 1,385 |
| Nevada | 955 | 112 | 27 | 1,094 |
| Arizona | 929 | 70 | 93 | 1,092 |
| Wyoming | 819 | 47 | 11 | 877 |
| New Mexico | 657 | 60 | 39 | 756 |
| Texas | 674 | 27 | 22 | 723 |
| Utah | 617 | 46 | 9 | 672 |
| New York | 591 | 27 | 12 | 630 |
| Illinois | 543 | 10 | 20 | 573 |
| Pennsylvania | 536 | 11 | 6 | 553 |
| Montana | 386 | 43 | 6 | 435 |
County-Level Distribution
Process Type by Location
Clean energy projects concentrate in the Western states and Southeast nuclear corridor. South Carolina leads (driven by Savannah River Site activity), followed by Washington, California, and Idaho. The county-level map reveals clustering around major federal facilities and high-resource renewable areas (desert Southwest for solar, Great Plains for wind).
Report generated 2026-01-21 | NEPA Clean Energy Analysis